


The Music of Chemistry

by NikAdair



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: High School Teacher AU, combining two of my favourite subjects into one cute fic for a beautiful ship, music teacher adam, science teacher shiro
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-28
Updated: 2019-04-28
Packaged: 2020-02-08 15:56:01
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,958
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18626455
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NikAdair/pseuds/NikAdair
Summary: Shiro and Adam are both teachers at the same high school, and despite their vastly different subjects, they can truly find happiness





	The Music of Chemistry

**Author's Note:**

> Hi there! This fic was originally written for the Confirmed Lovers Adashi Zine! It's a free PDF zine that you can download now!

Cold morning air rushed in as the outside door to the music room was opened. Flakes of snow drifted in, swirling and fluttering around in the wind before settling on the grey carpet. A cold figure bundled in layers of coats and scarfs and gloves walked in, stomping his boots on the floor to knock snow off of them. Fogged up glasses made it hard to see, and the figure took them off, wiping the condensation off on the edge of his frost covered scarf.

“Of all the days to snow, it had to be today,” he muttered to himself. A second figure walked in after him, nearly running into him as he shook the snow from his hat. He took a stutter step to the side, narrowly avoiding knocking the first male over. As the door closed behind him, the wind was cut off, and the room lost the pale morning light, leaving them in darkness.

“Takashi, could you find the light switch?” the first male said as he unraveled his scarf. There was a shuffling sound and a few hits against the wall, and a second later the room lit up as the fluorescent lights turned on. “Thank you hun.”

“You know we could’ve just gone in through the front doors and  _ not _ had to trek through an unplowed sidewalk. And Adam, seriously, can’t you call me Shiro like the rest of the staff?” Shiro said, walking around Adam as he shed his coat, turning off into Adam’s office.

“Yes, but then we’d have to listen to the students whispering about us again,” Adam said, following after him. He closed the door to his office as he hung up his coat, tossing Shiro’s onto his desk as he spun him around. “I also wouldn’t get my ‘have a good day at work’ kiss,” he said, winking.

Shiro rolled his eyes but pulled Adam forward, giving him a gentle kiss, lips cold against Adam’s scarf warmed ones. Adam chuckled into the kiss, pulling away as he looked at him. “You’ve got snowflakes in your eyelashes.” Shiro rolled his eyes again, pushing past Adam and walked out of the office as he started laughing.

Adam grabbed a stack of folders off his desk as he walked out. Shiro was busy setting up chairs, the familiar drop echoing in the room. “You don’t have to be so aggressive with them. You know the school won’t pay to replace them if they break,” Adam scolded, weaving around him as he set the folders on the podium. He looked at Shiro and got a challenging look, the next chair dropping louder than the others, and Adam sighed.

He walked back and grabbed the second stack, placing those next to the first, and helped Shiro finish setting up the chairs. They could hear students walking in the hall and Shiro turned to look at the clock. “I should get going, my first class students are a handful on a good day.” Adam turned from where he stood, two stands in each hand, and nodded, placing stands in front of chairs as he made his way to Shiro.

“It might be a good idea to get going. I’ll see you in Chemistry?” Adam said, smirking a little as Shiro rolled his eyes. He walked forward, making sure they were out of sight of the windows on the doors, and wrapped his arms around Adam’s waist.

“Do I have choice?” he asked. Adam shook his head, leaning up to give a gentle kiss. Shiro chuckled, kissing him. The sound of something hitting the door jolted them, and they pulled away quickly. Adam was scowling while Shiro chuckled. “I’ll go see what that was and try to control the crowd. You finish setting up.”

Adam stepped out of his arms, watching as Shiro walked out the doors, calling something like “There better not be any thrown objects down here!” into the crowd of students, and he laughed, grabbing a few more stands before letting his students in. They pushed past each other, some heading to the instrument room, others helping him finish setting up the stands and placing folders on them.

At the sound of the bell (more of a buzzer type sound), they found their seats and Adam took his place on the podium. The familiar energy of the first day of concert band was thick in the air, and he couldn’t help the smile he had. Eager faces looked back at him, some already looking through their folders, others watching intently for instructions.

He took a breath and clapped his hands together, getting their attention. “Good morning class!” A resounding response of “Good morning Mr. Weiss!” was received, and he smiled more. “Welcome to concert band! Now then,” he brought his hands up, and the eager shuffle of papers was a heard. “Shall we begin?”

\---

Shiro was in the middle of a lesson about acids and bases when the familiar creak of his door was heard. His class turned to watch as Adam walked in. He took his usual seat in the back, choosing to sit on the desk today, and leaned back on his hands, looking at him.

“Ah, Mr. Weiss, glad you could join us again today. Part of me thinks I should start giving you homework assignments as well,” Shiro said, earning a few laughs from his students. Most of them had turned back to the presentation, but a few still looked at Adam. Adam had a smug look on his face, causing Shiro to scowl.

“I don’t think that’d be fair Mr. Shirogane. I  _ do _ know where you keep all the answer keys. Wouldn’t want me to cheat, now would you?” More students started laughing, and Shiro rolled his eyes, turning his attention back to his notes.

“If you’re going to be here, at least have the decency to sit in the chair,” he said, clicking to the next slide. He waited a few seconds for the class to turn back to the front before he started up again. “So, as we discussed, acids can be neutralized with the use of base, and that this normally causes a violent reaction.”

He walked over to the lab station next to his desk, gesturing to a beaker of vinegar and a container of baking soda. “Here we have vinegar and baking soda, a pretty common acid and base. We all know what happens when we mix them together.” He received affirmative nods and noises to this, and he nodded, dumping the vinegar into the baking soda, letting it react.

“As we can see, the baking soda is neutralizing the vinegar, causing a reaction that releases heat and carbon dioxide due to the break down of these materials. Because of this reaction, the acid is reduced to water, as well as both sodium and acetate ions. Now, based on what we’ve learned today, who can tell me why this happens?”

The room was silent, which was to be expected. A hand rose in the back, and Shiro resisted the urge to roll his eyes. “Yes, Mr. Weiss?” Adam had a smirk on his face, causing Shiro to scowl a little. He could hear whispers coming from some of his students, and he crossed his arms. “Well?”

“Have you considered,” he drawled out, pausing long enough to hear more whispering, “that they react like that because they belong together?” Shiro could feel his face heat up a little, knowing Adam was referring to them, and his class exploded in whispering. He caught a few phrases from his students: ‘Did you see the way Mr. Shirogane’s face got red?’ ‘Did you see the way Mr. Weiss was looking at him?’ ‘There’s no way they’re not together.'

Shiro cleared his throat, silencing his class as he sent a scowl back at Adam. “No, Mr. Weiss, that is the exact opposite of why they react this way.” He clicked to the next slide and continued his lesson. He kept glancing back at Adam, and at some point that smirk had disappeared, leaving in its wake an affectionate smile. He gave him a small smile, careful to not let his students see.

The bell rang and his class packed up their things, filing out of the room. Shiro could hear various good-byes being given to Adam, who just smiled and waved as they left. Shiro was busy cleaning up from class, packing his things, and Adam walked up to him.

“You always get so animated when you’re teaching, you know,” he said, leaning against the lab table. Shiro’s face warmed up a little, and he coughed, shaking his head.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” He closed his laptop, stacking it atop a manilla folder of papers and the physics book, feeling Adam’s eyes on him. When he looked up, Adam had a humour-filled smile, but it didn’t reach his eyes. They were filled with affection. “Don’t you have a class to teach?” Shiro said, walking to his door.

Adam shrugged, following him out. “I’ve got some time. It’s jazz band. Those students always improv in the beginning anyway. How else would we be getting solo awards at every contest?” Shiro chuckled, bumping their shoulders together.

“I always assumed it was because you bribed the judges into giving you those awards.” Adam feigned hurt, swatting at Shiro’s arm, and he laughed, nearly dropping his things. He took a moment to rearrange them in his arms before walking again, taking the familiar route to the band room.

“You know I’m kidding. Those students are talented. They deserve every award they’ve gotten.” It was Adam’s turn to blush. He was very proud of his students, and celebrated all their achievements. He could hear a tenor sax playing wildly while the drum set, piano, and bass played underneath as they stood outside the door. “After you, maestro. It is your class after all.”

Adam scowled a little, opening the door and walking in. Shiro followed after him, and he could instantly see his demeanor change. He had that easy going smile back, pride in his eyes as he talked to the band. Shiro slid down the wall, setting about grading school work as he listened to their rehearsal.

He’d occasionally look up, and see Adam glancing at him, and he’d give him a smile, watching as a few of the students looked between them. He’d laugh under his breath as he continued to grade, pausing only when one of the students would improv a solo. He’d meant it when he said those students deserved those awards. The effort they put in matched that of his physics students, and he himself could feel some pride for them growing.

\---

Adam flopped on the couch with a sigh, dropping his arms over the side of the couch. “Takashi, I’m hungry,” he whined, turning his head to look at him. Shiro was by the door, hanging up Adam’s forgotten coat and his own. He looked over at him, rolling his eyes.

“What do you expect me to do about that? You know I can’t cook,” he said, walking over and shoving Adam’s legs off the couch. Adam whined again, burying his face in the couch.

“Order something.” Shiro laughed, the movement shaking the couch, and therefore shaking Adam. He sat up, turning to lean against Shiro. Shiro wrapped an arm around Adam’s waist, pulling him closer to him.

“You know, you’re giving too many hints to us,” Shiro said casually, looking through the emails he’d gotten. A few were from students telling him they wouldn’t be in class due to volleyball. Others were from staff members responding to his own. “If you’re not too careful, they’re going to find out about us.”

Adam groaned, burying his face in Shiro’s chest. He felt the rumble of his chuckle as he shifted, his arm moving him slightly. He peered out from where he hid, seeing Shiro pulling his laptop to his lap. “So let them know, I don’t care,” he mumbled, watching him order food. Pizza. Something quick and easy to clean up.

He closed his laptop again, placing it on the coffee table, readjusting himself to hold Adam closer against him. He let himself be moved, closing his eyes against that warmth that was Shiro. “Are you sure that’s a good idea?” he asked quietly. Something about his tone made him peek up at him. He had a concerned look in his eyes.

Adam shifted so he was sitting up, pulling Shiro’s hand into his lap. “Takashi, we don’t have to let them know if you don’t want to. If you’re not comfortable with it, then that’s okay with me.” He squeezed his hand reassuringly, hoping that he helped relax him and pull him from his thoughts.

Shiro turned to him, giving him a small smile, and squeezed his hand back. “I just think that we should wait until we’re married, you know?” He said it so nonchalantly, and yet, it made Adam’s heartbeat pick up. They’d never talked about getting married, and he hadn’t wanted to bring it up, not until he knew Shiro would be comfortable talking about it.

He looked at him, receiving another smile, and he smiled back, leaning against his chest again. “I didn’t know you’d planned on marrying me,” he said teasingly. He felt the rumble of Shiro’s chuckling again, the low bass resonating in his chest.

“Of course I do. Why else would I keep you around?” he said, a lightness in his voice. There’s was a bit of seriousness in it as well, but it was just barely there, barely evident enough that if Adam hadn’t been listening as closely, he would’ve missed it.

“I would hope you keep me around because you love me.” He looked up at Shiro, seeing affection in his eyes as he leaned down, giving him a gentle kiss, very similar to the one he’d gotten that morning.  _ Had it really been that morning? God, it feels so long ago. _

Shiro pulled away, lingering close to him before pulling away completely. He reached forward, pulling the manilla folder into his lap. “How would you like to help me grade some stuff?” Adam laughed, nodding as he sat up. Shiro pulled out a paper clipped pile of papers, handing them to him along with the key. “Take care of the multiple choice ones?”

“Yes sir!” He gave a salute, causing Shiro to laugh, before grabbing one of the red pens from the table (Shiro always left a few there, since he had a habit of doing his work in the living room rather than at a table). He bit the cap of the pen and pulled it off, checking off answers that were wrong while Shiro worked on the short answer questions.

A lot of information went over his head, since he’d never been one for science, much less chemistry. Too many numbers and equations to remember, too many elements and chemicals. Biology was more his strong suit, and he was proud of that. Shiro never let him live that fact down, saying how it was the ‘easy science’. Really, he just liked to think he was in the superior science. How he taught physics, Adam would never know. That was like a foreign language to him.

They were mostly done when the doorbell rang and Shiro got up to get the pizza. Adam finished his last few papers in time for him to come back, a few paper plates stacked on top. The smell of garlic and melted cheese wafted through the holes in the side of box, and it made his stomach growl. He practically dove for the food as soon as Shiro put it on the table.

“Did you even eat lunch today?” Shiro asked, laughing as he put away the assignments. Adam ignored him, taking a large bite of the pizza. It was hot, the cheese burning the roof of his mouth a little. He hummed happily, grabbing a couple more slices and putting them on a plate before settling against the back of the couch.

Shiro turned on a movie, and Adam resituated himself so he was leaning against him, his back against Shiro’s side and Shiro’s arm around his waist. His legs were stretched out across the rest of the couch, and Shiro’s were kicked up onto the table, pushing things around enough to make room for them without knocking anything over.

He reached up and turned off the lamp, and Adam smiled. He knew that they’d both end up falling asleep watching the movie, their stomachs full and the warmth of the food spreading throughout their bodies. At some point, they’d changed positions, and Shiro laid behind him, holding him against his chest. He’d pulled a blanket over them, and Adam had buried himself in the soft fabric.

He could feel sleep pulling him under, and he thanked whatever higher being there was that it was a Friday night, and that they didn’t have to be up the next morning. “I love you Adam Weiss, and I promise one day we’ll get married,” Shiro whispered softly, barely audible. Adam’s eyes closed, a warm smile on his lips, and he felt Shiro’s arms tighten around him.

“I love you too Takashi, so very much.” It was soft, softer than Shiro’s voice had been, but he knew he’d been heard. The gentle kiss on the side of his head had been proof that he’d been heard. It wasn’t long before he was pulled under, everything falling away as he fell asleep, love the only thing on his mind, the idea that he’d found his forever, and that one day he’d be able to spend forever with him.


End file.
